Wyden called the discussions “very preliminary,” touching on “what’s ahead, potential timetable” and other topics.

Governance in resource-rich countries in focus

Corruption and governance in states flush with oil, gas and mineral resources will be explored at a Wednesday event hosted by the Brookings Institution.

The discussion revolves around the release of the Revenue Watch Institute’s Resource Governance Index, which covers 58 countries.

From an advisory:

Trillions of dollars in resources lie buried in the backyards of many of the world’s poorest citizens. Oil, gas and minerals can, if managed effectively and accountably, stimulate economic development. Too often, however, secrecy, corruption and weak institutions obstruct this path.

Panelists include Carlos Pascual, special envoy and coordinator for international energy affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of Energy Resources, and Daniel Kaufmann, president of the Revenue Watch Institute and a nonresident senior fellow at Brookings.

"My meeting with EPA this afternoon was productive. We discussed Republicans' 5 key transparency requests [again]. They'll be getting back to us on those late tomorrow, and that will determine Republican EPW members' approach to Thursday's scheduled mark-up,” Vitter said in a statement Tuesday evening.

Energy agency bullish on North American oil

North American shale oil production will be the strongest source of global supply growth over the next five years, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Tuesday.

“The supply shock created by a surge in North American oil production will be as transformative to the market over the next five years as was the rise of Chinese demand over the last 15,” the IEA said in a statement about its Medium-Term Oil Market Report.

IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven credited technological advances in drilling, such as hydraulic fracturing, for the boom. She said that technology will soon be applied elsewhere, “potentially leading to a broad reassessment of reserves.”

On Tuesday, the European Commission said it was investigating major oil companies over suspected anti-competitive agreements related to submission of prices to leading oil pricing agency Platts, a unit of McGraw Hill Group.

"Officials carried out unannounced inspections at the premises of several companies active in and providing services to the crude oil, refined oil products and biofuels sectors," the Commission said. The inspections took place in two EU member states and one non-EU country, it said.